Defragmenting disks is a very important part of computer maintenance, because badly fragmented hard drives can make your PC slow and unreliable. That’s why you need to defrag regularly. The easiest way to do it is to schedule defrag to run once a week. It’s best to schedule defragmentation for the time when you are not using your computer, so that it won’t interrupt your work.

But what if you keep forgetting to schedule defrag or it keeps annoying you by starting up when you are in the middle of something? The answer is to use defrag screensaver. It will start automatically when your system goes idle, so your work will never get interrupted by defragmentation again.

Auslogics Disk Defrag Screen Saver is a useful tool that defragments your hard drives in screensaver mode. It’s fast, very light on system resources, and looks fantastic.

When your system goes idle, defrag screensaver will quickly analyze your hard drives and check whether they need to be defragged or not. If your disks are fragmented, Disk Defrag Screen Saver will start defragmenting and will pause whenever you resume work. Defragmentation will be completed when you take your next break. As you can see, this is the ideal way to schedule defrag and make it as unintrusive as possible.

Disk Defrag Screen Saver is very easy to use. First of all, download and install it. It will be added to the list  of your screensavers and set as current screensaver automatically. Then you can customize it and schedule defrag. Here’s how:

1. Right-click somewhere on your desktop background and go to Properties or Personalize. A new window will appear
2. Go to the Screen Saver tab
3. Set the system idle time for defrag screensaver to wait before starting up
4. Click on the Settings button and select which drives you want defragmented

While defragmenting Auslogics Disk Defrag Screen Saver displays a comprehensive real-time fragmentation map. It lets you track overall defragmentation progress and see which file is being defragmented at the moment.

Auslogics Disk Defrag Screen Saver is a great app that will ensure top hard drive performance. It also makes defragmentation as easy and enjoyable as it can be. Disk Defrag Screen Saver supports Windows 7/Vista/2008/XP/2003, 32-bit and 64-bit and it’s absolutely free.

Today we have some exciting news – the all new Disk Defrag 3 is out of beta. Auslogics Disk Defrag is not just a simple defrag utility – now it’s a fully featured disk optimizer. The new version has features that beat paid analogs, has new Windows 7-style user interface, and is even faster than before. And it remains absolutely FREE.

What’s New?

1. Free Space Consolidation

Simple defragmentation only defrags files and not free disk space. This means that free space is scattered all over the disk. When new files are created, Windows fills those small free space fragments in. The more fragmented the free space is, the more fragmented new files will be. Disk Defrag 3 consolidates free space into a large contiguous block, so that there are no “holes”. This technology effectively prevents file fragmentation and speeds up disk access.

2. System Files Smart Placement

Quite often Windows system files get placed all over the disk and end up mixed with other files. As a result Windows takes longer to access them. Disk Defrag 3 arranges system files by defragmenting and moving them to the faster part of the disk. This improves overall computer performance and makes your system run smoother.

3. Keeping the MFT Reserved Zone Clear

NTFS file system reserves about 12.5% of disk space for the MFT records (a place where information about every file and directory is stored). However, when the rest of the disk space is getting low, the MFT Reserved Zone is used to store regular files. This may lead to MFT fragmentation, which will force HDD heads to move more and slow down data access. Disk Defrag 3 moves regular files from the MFT Reserved Zone to the rest of the disk space, allowing NTFS to allocate contiguous space for the MFT records and prevent its fragmentation.

4. List of Fragmented Files

Auslogics Disk Defrag 3 creates a list of all fragmented files after performing disk analysis. Selecting any file from the list will highlight its clusters’ location on the fragmentation map. Selected files can be easily defragmented or added to the ignore list.

Other features include options to integrate Disk Defrag into Windows Explorer context menu, run autodefragmentation when system goes idle, and minimize the application into the system tray.

You can find out more and download the new Auslogics Disk Defrag here. There is also a portable version of Disk Defrag that can be downloaded here.

We are happy to present you the new Auslogics Disk Defrag 3^beta! We call it “new” because Disk Defrag 3^beta is not just a defragmenter but a fully featured disk optimizer. We’ve supplied it with advanced techniques of disk optimization that only paid analogs have. With Disk Defrag 3^beta you can replace regular data files from the MFT Reserved Zone, consolidate free space and optimize system files placement. Let’s have a closer look at how these optimization techniques may affect your PC performance.

System files smart placement

Commonly used by Windows, system files may be scattered all over the disk and intermixed with data files. Disk Defrag 3^beta arranges system files by defragmenting and moving them to the faster part of the disk.  This minimizes the time needed for HDD to access system files and improves overall computer performance.

Free space consolidation

It is not a secret that a simple defragmentation leaves the free space on the disk highly fragmented. It means that there are many free space «holes» all over the disk. Windows fills in those free spaces with newly created or extended files. The more fragmented the free space is, the more fragmented new files will be.

Disk Defrag 3^beta merges all those free space «holes» into a large contiguous block during optimization process. This allows the file system to create new files without fragmentation. As a result, free space consolidation dramatically reduces further disk fragmentation.

Keeping the MFT Reserved Zone Clear

Any NTFS drive is divided into two main zones: MFT and the rest of the disk. MFT (Master File Table) is a place where information about every file and directory is stored. In order to keep MFT records contiguous, Windows reserves about 12.5% of the disk volume for them. This reserved disk space is called “MFT Reserved Zone”.

Normally, NTFS prevents writing data other than MFT records to the MFT Reserved Zone. However, when the rest of the disk space is getting low, the MFT Reserved Zone will be used for storing regular files. This may lead to MFT fragmentation.

Since MFT fragmentation degrades hard drive performance by increasing the number of reads required for some files, it is important to keep the MFT Reserved Zone clear of regular files. Disk Defrag 3^beta moves regular data files from the MFT Reserved Zone into the rest of the disk space. This allows NTFS to allocate contiguous space for the MFT and thus to prevent its fragmentation.

Other improvements include a significantly increased defragmentation speed and a redesigned user interface. Navigating through Disk Defrag 3^beta is now even more simple and intuitive.  For instance, we’ve added a handy auto-defrag icon to easily customize and control an automatic defragmentation mode.  Another useful feature I’d like to mention is an ability of Disk Defrag 3^beta to list all the fragmented files after performing disk analysis. You can select one or several of them to see their clusters’ location on the disk.

And we have more good news for our users – with all the improvements we’ve made, Disk Defrag 3^beta still remains absolutely FREE!

You can download the new Disk Defrag 3^beta here.

It’s not a secret that hard disks are the slowest part of a computer. That’s  because they have moving parts, unlike RAM and CPU.  Fragmentation can significantly slow down a hard drive, since it forces the reading head to move more. As a result your computer becomes slower and you even might start experiencing freeze-ups and system crashes. That’s why it’s very important to keep the disks defragmented.

Auslogics Disk Defrag is a free tool to fight disk fragmentation. It doesn’t need to analyze the disk first, which makes it one of the fastest disk defragmenting tools available today. The program has a clear interface and is very easy to use.

Fragmentation is caused by creating and deleting files and folders, installing new software, and downloading files from the Internet. Computers do not necessarily save an entire file or folder in a single space on a disk; they’re saved in the first available space. After a large portion of a disk has been used, most of the subsequent files and folders are saved in pieces across the volume.

Disk Defrag Options

Apart from basic disk defragmentation, Disk Defrag has an option to defrag single file or folder, lets you schedule defragmentation, and offers command line support.

Command line options allow users to defragment multiple disks, specify how much CPU should be used for defragmentation, and generate detailed HTML logs.  A comprehensive list of error codes is provided, so that system administrators can use the program in their automation scripts.

Home users may find that they are more comfortable with the feature-rich built-in scheduler available in the program settings. The scheduler lets you specify when automatic defragmentation should be performed, which disks to defragment, and if a detailed report should be created.

Auslogics Disk Defrag received awards from reputable websites like CNet, Majorgeeks, and Tucows, and lots of positive user reviews. It is available as a separate free tool or as part of Auslogics BoostSpeed – an award-winning computer optimization suite.

If you have Vista, then for sure you have encountered this problem – your hard disk keeps churning and your Task Manager looks something like this:

Sometimes it would stop, then start again for no apparent reason. And what’s worse, frequent disk access interferes with your computer usage and makes life hard. Annoying, isn’t it?

Fortunately, there are some things you can do to tame the shrew and make your hard drive behave normally.

Disable Disk Indexing

In theory, Disk Indexing is a very useful feature, because it indexes and updates lists of all the files that are on your computer to let you search for files and folders faster. But the downside of it is that it makes your computer slow and loud. To disable indexing:

1. Navigate to Control Panel
2. Under Programs choose Uninstall a Program
3. Click on Turn Windows features on or off
4. Disable the Indexing Service

Don’t worry, Vista search will still work perfectly fine with indexing turned off.

Modify Disk Defragmentation Settings

Windows Vista automatically configures Disk Defragmenter to run once a week. That may be another reason why your hard drive starts thrashing. If you don’t constantly download new files and install software, it would be a good idea to schedule disk defragmentation to run once a month.

1. Type defrag in the search box and hit Enter. This will open Disk Defragmenter.
2. Click on Modify schedule and choose whichever option feels best (I recommend once a month)

But, to be honest, the built-in Windows defrag utility is not particularly good. So I would disable scheduled defragmentation (just uncheck the Run on schedule checkbox) and use Auslogics Disk Defrag instead.  It’s a lot faster and won’t make your hard disk spin endlessly. You can schedule defragmentation to run weekly – just open Auslogics Disk Defrag, go to Settings – Task Scheduler and set the time when you want to defrag.

Turn off System Restore

System restore points are a great idea – they let you roll back your system to a previously known state. But I’ve found that Vista is obsessed with them and creates them any time you touch your computer, basically. Of course, that makes life hard for your hard disk. And anyway, you don’t need every restore point Vista creates! I’d recommend turning off System Restore alltogether and using the upgraded Vista backup utility instead.

To turn off Systerm Restore:

1. Go to Control Panel
2. Click System and Maintenance, then System
3. Under Tasks, click System protection
4. Click Continue when prompted by UAC
5. Under Available Disks, uncheck the check box next to your main drive

Keep in mind that you have disabled System Restore and backup whenever you make serious changes to your system.

Change Windows Defender and Your Antivirus Settings

Windows Defender performs daily scans by default. Come to this of it, your antivirus program might do the same. Both are totally unnecessary.  I’d recommend changing your Windows Defender Settings (once a week is enough) and disabling background scans your antivirus migt perform altogether. Most antiviruses give you real-time protection and you can always run a manual scan on a regular basis, say, once a month.

Sydney, Australia – January 6, 2009 – Auslogics releases Disk Defrag with command line support. The command line options are among the most comprehensive and are suitable for silently defragmenting servers, workstations and personal computers.

Personal computers and especially file servers require frequent disk defragmentation for maximum disk access speed. Recognizing this, Auslogics team has come up with a new version of Disk Defrag that supports command line options. The new version can be run manually on a personal computer, remotely or via a batch file on a server.

Command line options allow the user to defragment multiple disks, specify how much CPU should be used during the defragmentation process, and generate detailed HTML logs. Defragmentation of separate files and folders is also possible. A comprehensive list of errors codes is provided, so that system administrators can use the program in their automation scripts.

Home users may find that they are more comfortable with the feature-rich built-in scheduler available in the program settings. The scheduler allows to specify when the automatic defragmentation should be performed, which disks will be defragmented, and if a detailed report should be created.

Disk Defrag is available as part of Auslogics BoostSpeed from http://www.auslogics.com/en/software/boost-speed or as a separate tool. The command line tool is called “cdefrag.exe” and can be found in the program folder once you download and install the program.

Sydney, Australia – October 30, 2008 – Auslogics releases a new version of its award-winning computer optimization suite, BoostSpeed 4.2™. This premium quality package is designed to tune-up a system to its peak performance and keep it in perfect condition. Auslogics BoostSpeed provides comprehensive system maintenance and has an intuitive interface. It combines various optimization and security utilities that can speed up  even a fast new computer and protect your privacy.

What’s New

BoostSpeed 4.2 is the first optimization software that fully supports the new Google Chrome browser, as well as Internet Explorer 8, Firefox 3, Opera, and Safari for Windows. Unlike other similar programs, BoostSpeed checks hardware and Internet connection specifications first and then applies tailor-made changes.

It’s not a secret that most users don’t need all Windows services that are enabled by default. Many people have no idea which service does what. Some services can slow down a computer a lot and are safe to turn off, but how to find out which ones are vital and which ones can be disabled? Auslogics’ developers came up with an effective solution.

The new version of Auslogics BoostSpeed introduces Service Manager. It’s a new tool from Auslogics that makes managing Windows services safe and easy even for novice users. This new utility contains services description and rating, as well as detailed recommendations written in plain English. Now there will be no need to spend hours researching what each service does.

Disk Defrag and Registry Defrag

Great news for BoostSpeed 4.2 users is that it includes the latest versions of Auslogics’ top rated and extremely popular Disk Defrag and Registry Defrag.

The new version of Auslogics Disk Defrag has a lot to offer. First of all, a console utility has been added, which makes it possible to defragment disks from the command line. This neat feature is especially handy for companies, because now they will be able to remotely defragment their servers and workstations. In fact, it is now possible to schedule defrags to run on a regular basis, for example weekly, and leave it all to Disk Defrag. Heavily fragmented server files can drastically decrease server and workstation performance, therefore it is vital to defragment them regularly.

As for Auslogics Registry Defrag, it is now the safest Registry defragmenter out there, because it defragments the Registry on computer reboot, before all other applications load. Another great improvement is that now it doesn’t lock the system to defrag.

Auslogics Registry Defrag works properly on 64-bit Windows XP and Vista systems. Where other similar programs give wrong numbers and can potentially cause system problems, Auslogics Registry Defrag is even more stable and reliable than before. Also now the Registry analysis is five times faster. That makes Registry Defrag the fastest Registry defragmenter on the market.

The Effect

Sometimes the effect of optimization software is hard to notice. But BoostSpeed can make some things, like Internet browsing speed, up to 300% faster, and boost overall performance by 30-50%.

About the Program

The program runs on Windows Vista, XP, 2000, and 2003. It properly supports both 32-bit and 64-bit processors, while a lot of similar programs are having trouble with 64-bit Windows. BoostSpeed has a 15-day free trial period and the full unrestricted version costs only USD$29.95. Auslogics is always confident in the performance of the software and therefore offers a money back guarantee.